Diablo 3 launch overloads servers

Turns out, Diablo III is pretty popular. So popular, in fact, that the servers have been overloaded by the flood of clickmaniacs. Still, there as some good news, as Blizzard is helping out Australian pre-orderers after retailer GAME ditched them but kept their money.

Turns out, Diablo III is pretty popular. So popular, in fact, that the servers have been overloaded by the flood of clickmaniacs trying to play when it launched at midnight. As Diablo III requires players be online to play, even by themselves, there are a lot of sullen faces around this morning, staring glumly at 'Error 37' messages. Still, some are able to play.

There's a little good D3 news in that Blizzard is helping out Australian fans who pre-ordered from GAME, after the failing retailer said it wouldn't honour their orders but would keep their money.

"Due to high concurrency the login servers are currently at full capacity. This may cause delays in the login process, account pages and web services," a Blizzard representative said of Error 37. "We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your patience while this is being resolved."

A message on the login screen notes, "We're also aware of issues affecting character creation and are working to resolve them at this time." Hang in there, then.

As for the land down under, after GAME entered administration earlier this week, it told Diablo III pre-orders that they wouldn't receive their game, but nor could they get a refund. Blizzard kindly stepped in to save them, explaining that those with proof of preordering can buy a digital copy through Battle.net then submit their GAME receipt for a refund. You'll need to buy before May 21, and send your receipt in by June 30, though.

We'll be bringing you diaries from our adventures in Diablo III--once we can get past Error 37.